Hello Gwen, MargM and Listers, your suggestion, Gwen, that the area and road may have been named after the Maiden's Blush trees [Sloanea australis] seems quite feasible. I was able to find a photo and information on these trees in one of my books and it also mentions, as you say, that they are very good timber for furniture joinery and are now used as street trees and in parks. I recognised the seed pods, so I have probably often seen them without knowing what they were! An interesting snippet: Maidens Brush Creek, Gosford [a gully] was renamed on 2 January 1987 to Bradys Gully, Gosford. It is described as - "A watercourse about 2.5 km long, rising about 1 km west of Erina Trig. Station and flowing generally west then NW into Narara Creek. [Source: web site for the Geographical Names Board, NSW]. Is Bradys Gully in the general area of Maiden's Brush Road? William Creighton's neighbours in Maiden/s Brush in the 1850s were: James Mitchell G. Corocher K. S. Ward J.C. Smith W.J.W. Miles [formerly owned by E.S. Ward] George Rankin H.T. May William Ward Are any of the above names familiar to listers? James Mitchell was immediatley to the west of William Creighton and had a very large parcel of land [at least 300 acres]. Was James Mitchell a well known pioneer? I have also located a street directory for the area and hope to have it in my hot little hands this weekend [a very sensible suggestion, thanks Gwen], regards Wendy McKenzie